Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Grace in the Public Square (Titus 3:1-2)
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Grace in the Public Square (Titus 3:1-2)
Preface - Be sure to check out the audio version linked above.
A Verse
Titus 3:1-2
1 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.
A Comment
Yesterday, we considered the need to be reminded. This is a hallmark of faithful, gospel ministry. We are not expected to come up with new ideas but rather repeat the ideas that God has revealed for His people in His word. Today, we are going to take a look at the substance of the reminder for Titus’ audience. Specifically, Paul commands Titus to remind his audience of their need “to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.”
When covering a passage like this, our tendency, at least here in the West, is to immediately qualify the kind of submission and obedience that Paul is commanding Titus to remind his congregation of in his ministry. In other words, instead of considering our responsibility as citizens in our respective countries, we want to know how and when we should NOT be submissive and obedient to “rulers and authorities.”
I get this impulse, at least in part. I doubt anyone reading or listening today would say that their favorite Bible verse is Romans 13:6-7, which says, “For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Nevertheless, as Christians, we believe that Scripture is God’s Word. Passages about submitting to and obeying ruling authorities, whether by paying taxes or simply by being good, responsible, hardworking, and law-abiding citizens, are just as inspired and authoritative as John 3:16 and Romans 8:1. The Scriptures are not a buffet from which we get to pick and choose the things that suit our tastes.
As we consider Titus 3:1-2, we need to be reminded that when the ruling authorities do not require us to disobey or dishonor God, we have a responsibility to submit to their God-ordained authority over our lives and the society in which we live. As Robert Yarbrough put it, “The special grace [we] have received in Christ should enhance, not curtail, [our] cooperation with the common grace of human government to the extent this is possible.” Just like the Cretan to whom Titus ministered, so we need this reminder.
So, what might this look like in practice? For starters, it would look like Christians being model citizens to the extent that they are able without violating their consciences before God. I believe this would include observing laws, participating in our political processes, and advocating for righteousness in the public square. Furthermore, I believe this means we should acknowledge the legitimacy of maintaining and promoting rightly ordered loves (ordo amoris) within the Christian community, which includes not only a supreme and preeminent love of the Triune God but also a love of family, friends, neighbors, and country.
And just in case you skipped over the last word of the last sentence, yes, I said we should have a rightly ordered love for our country. Love for one’s country is not an endorsement of all that your country or its political leaders have or are doing at any given moment. Instead, it is an acknowledgment of God's sovereignty, who has “set the boundaries of our dwelling places that we might seek Him” (Acts 17:26-27).
In keeping with these convictions, an implication of Titus 3:1-2 would be to obey Paul’s admonition to Timothy in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, where he writes, “1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”
When I first began serving in pastoral ministry, I had the privilege of serving under the leadership of Earl Blackburn. Earl was (and is to this day) a man of great conviction. Week in and week out, I sat under Earl’s leadership and listened as he led our congregation in pastoral prayer during our morning worship service. Regardless of who was in political office at the time, Earl led our congregation to pray for those political leaders. Among the many things that I learned from Earl, I learned that obedience to God’s Word did not depend on the political climate of the day. We pray for our political leaders not because they are worthy of our prayers, not because they have earned it, but because God commands us to do so.
Now, for those who are wondering about the exceptional scenarios when submission and obedience to our ruling authorities would actually be a form of insubordination and disobedience to God, the ultimate Ruling Authority of the universe, I will close by saying this: when earthly ruling authorities require you to violate God’s Word and your conscience as it is informed by God’s Word, you should chose to “obey God rather than man.” With that said, the situation into which Paul was writing was not such a scenario. Most likely, given the Gospel’s proclamation of the Lordship of Christ, there were some in Titus’ church who were questioning why they needed to be submissive and obedient to other authorities at all. While their zeal for the Lordship of Christ was commendable, it was a zeal without a mature understanding of how God had ordained ruling authorities for the good of society. Thus, Paul wanted Titus to remind his people not to bring reproach on Christ or the ministry of His people in Crete because of a poor doctrine of the Christian life in the public square.
As for how you might be able to apply this passage to your life this morning, take a moment to obey 1 Timothy 2:1-2 and pray for the leaders that God has placed over you. You don’t have to agree with them on everything or anything to pray for them. If the apostle Peter could tell his audience to “honor the emperor” in 1 Peter 2:17, then surely we can pray for our elected officials to fear the Lord and lead with righteousness.
A Prayer
Would you pray with me?
A Blessing
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13)
Get full access to Hope for Life with Dr. Casey B. Hough at hopeforlife.substack.com/subscribe
View all episodes
By Casey B. HoughPreface - Be sure to check out the audio version linked above.
A Verse
Titus 3:1-2
1 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.
A Comment
Yesterday, we considered the need to be reminded. This is a hallmark of faithful, gospel ministry. We are not expected to come up with new ideas but rather repeat the ideas that God has revealed for His people in His word. Today, we are going to take a look at the substance of the reminder for Titus’ audience. Specifically, Paul commands Titus to remind his audience of their need “to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.”
When covering a passage like this, our tendency, at least here in the West, is to immediately qualify the kind of submission and obedience that Paul is commanding Titus to remind his congregation of in his ministry. In other words, instead of considering our responsibility as citizens in our respective countries, we want to know how and when we should NOT be submissive and obedient to “rulers and authorities.”
I get this impulse, at least in part. I doubt anyone reading or listening today would say that their favorite Bible verse is Romans 13:6-7, which says, “For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Nevertheless, as Christians, we believe that Scripture is God’s Word. Passages about submitting to and obeying ruling authorities, whether by paying taxes or simply by being good, responsible, hardworking, and law-abiding citizens, are just as inspired and authoritative as John 3:16 and Romans 8:1. The Scriptures are not a buffet from which we get to pick and choose the things that suit our tastes.
As we consider Titus 3:1-2, we need to be reminded that when the ruling authorities do not require us to disobey or dishonor God, we have a responsibility to submit to their God-ordained authority over our lives and the society in which we live. As Robert Yarbrough put it, “The special grace [we] have received in Christ should enhance, not curtail, [our] cooperation with the common grace of human government to the extent this is possible.” Just like the Cretan to whom Titus ministered, so we need this reminder.
So, what might this look like in practice? For starters, it would look like Christians being model citizens to the extent that they are able without violating their consciences before God. I believe this would include observing laws, participating in our political processes, and advocating for righteousness in the public square. Furthermore, I believe this means we should acknowledge the legitimacy of maintaining and promoting rightly ordered loves (ordo amoris) within the Christian community, which includes not only a supreme and preeminent love of the Triune God but also a love of family, friends, neighbors, and country.
And just in case you skipped over the last word of the last sentence, yes, I said we should have a rightly ordered love for our country. Love for one’s country is not an endorsement of all that your country or its political leaders have or are doing at any given moment. Instead, it is an acknowledgment of God's sovereignty, who has “set the boundaries of our dwelling places that we might seek Him” (Acts 17:26-27).
In keeping with these convictions, an implication of Titus 3:1-2 would be to obey Paul’s admonition to Timothy in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, where he writes, “1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”
When I first began serving in pastoral ministry, I had the privilege of serving under the leadership of Earl Blackburn. Earl was (and is to this day) a man of great conviction. Week in and week out, I sat under Earl’s leadership and listened as he led our congregation in pastoral prayer during our morning worship service. Regardless of who was in political office at the time, Earl led our congregation to pray for those political leaders. Among the many things that I learned from Earl, I learned that obedience to God’s Word did not depend on the political climate of the day. We pray for our political leaders not because they are worthy of our prayers, not because they have earned it, but because God commands us to do so.
Now, for those who are wondering about the exceptional scenarios when submission and obedience to our ruling authorities would actually be a form of insubordination and disobedience to God, the ultimate Ruling Authority of the universe, I will close by saying this: when earthly ruling authorities require you to violate God’s Word and your conscience as it is informed by God’s Word, you should chose to “obey God rather than man.” With that said, the situation into which Paul was writing was not such a scenario. Most likely, given the Gospel’s proclamation of the Lordship of Christ, there were some in Titus’ church who were questioning why they needed to be submissive and obedient to other authorities at all. While their zeal for the Lordship of Christ was commendable, it was a zeal without a mature understanding of how God had ordained ruling authorities for the good of society. Thus, Paul wanted Titus to remind his people not to bring reproach on Christ or the ministry of His people in Crete because of a poor doctrine of the Christian life in the public square.
As for how you might be able to apply this passage to your life this morning, take a moment to obey 1 Timothy 2:1-2 and pray for the leaders that God has placed over you. You don’t have to agree with them on everything or anything to pray for them. If the apostle Peter could tell his audience to “honor the emperor” in 1 Peter 2:17, then surely we can pray for our elected officials to fear the Lord and lead with righteousness.
A Prayer
Would you pray with me?
A Blessing
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13)
Get full access to Hope for Life with Dr. Casey B. Hough at hopeforlife.substack.com/subscribe